A CURRENT EVENTS ACTIVITY FOR GRADES 3-5

February 17, 2005

History for Sale

Every Monday through Friday, News Snapshot features a newsworthy and provocative photo from The New York Times, along with the basic set of questions answered by journalists when relaying the news-- who, what, where, when, why and how.

TODAY'S PHOTOTing-Li Wang/The New York Times

TODAY'S QUESTIONSWHOSE rocking chair, pictured above, and other belongings went to auction this week? WHO put the items up for auction? WHO purchased the rocking chair?

WHAT is an auction? WHAT items do you have in your home that have some kind of historical significance?

WHERE were the auction held?

WHEN was John F. Kennedy president?

WHY would someone want to own a household item once belonging to someone famous?

HOW many people viewed the items before the auctions? HOW successful was the sale during the first two days?

Have each student select the most interesting News Snapshot from that week and follow the story for another week, creating a poster for the classroom using important photos, headlines and phrases from these news stories.

Have each student create his or her own News Snapshot by choosing an interesting photograph from the newspaper, reading the related article, and creating a series of questions and answers based on the photograph. Students can also find Web sites related to the Snapshots chosen.